Black flower
by ilona.korting
Summary: the story takes place in soul society. A girl is doing her best to become stronger. I have not read any of the manga so I do not know what happens after the last episode that came out and I am just having fun with a story that has been on my mind for a year or two... hope you enjoy it. I do not own Bleach or any of the characters.!... I do love them though ,
1. Black Flower

I do not know if I was born here, but Kusajishi 78th district of North Rukongai is the only thing I have known. I think I had been there for about 50 years but time flows so slowly here where there is nothing. My hair was short, curly and black so in dark places I could easily hide myself if I ducked behind something. I kept myself hidden for all these years and managed just fine on my own. I witnessed men and women killing each other for no less than short eye contact. People here are ruthless and I believe that it is my luck that saved me from conflict. But knowing where I was and knowing my surroundings I knew I had to gain strength. I found out that if I ran my feet became stronger. If I used my hands to hold heavy objects, they became stronger. I did this routine every day. I would hold big boulders and run around till I could no longer withstand it, whilst avoiding being spotted by the residents. I did this for over twenty years.  
I was well aware that I had grown from being a child to be closer to that of an adult. My hair had grown a lot and I had started to use a piece of string to tie it loosely to the side. My stature was stronger and I was able to run a lot longer that when I had started. I decided to bid farewell to this wretched place and set my sights on a better place. In my heart I knew that there had to be a better place for me than this. I had heard back when I was still a child that there were something called the Shinigami, soul reapers, and that they had it good. That is where I wanted to go. But I had no Idea how to go there so I just ran in a direction and hopefully it was the right one.  
After a few week's I had started to feel something inside me that I did not recognize. The usual feeling of thirst I had gotten used to but. This was something different. I felt a need.  
After a long hot day I came to an area where a small pond was surrounded my small berry bushes. The berries looked delicious and I tasted some but knowing I did not need subsistence such as that I made my way to the pond. I saw my self for the first time in this still pond. I saw I was skinny but I could make out subtle muscles on my arms and I saw my eye's were mostly dark but I couldn't make out any color. Without wasting any time I stuck my head to the bottom drinking to my hearts intent. It was a beautiful feeling. Before long I had submerged myself in the pond completely. I felt as the dust washed away from my hair and rags, I turned on my back and floated in the water. My eye's closed and I could almost feel my need to run slip away.  
Then there was a voice. Two to be exact. A child and a grown man. I quickly but quietly made my way out of the pond ant away from the voices until.  
"No Let me go!" the child howled. The man had a firm grip on his neck.  
"Let you go? hahh" the man raised his right arm and with a clenched fist he punched the child in the chest.  
"Fight him, don't let him do this" A voice inside me whispered. Without thinking I ran, jumped and landed with my feet first in the face of the man. He lost his balance and dropped the kid, who ran in the opposite direction. The man did not care he charged at me but luckily I was able to dodge him and I slammed both of my fist's in his sides. Not wasting a moment I kicked his head and rendered him unconscious. As I contemplated what had just happened I stood there dazed. My rags were still drenched and it left the ground around me somewhat darker than it had been. What was that voice I heard. Was it just me not wanting to see more violence. After a moment I shook of my dazed state and began walking away. Making my way further into the heart of sole society without knowing it then.  
After walking only for a few hours my stomach started to make the most awful sounds, grumbling and rumbling and it made my head hurt. Then I saw them, two men wearing black kimonos. And they were headed my way. One with a head as shiny as the sun, and one with weird feathers sticking our from his right eye and eyebrow. Such a strange sight. They must have noticed me for there eye's were fixed upon me. Just then my head started to feel heavy as the pain in my stomach only grew. I fell to my knees and could not find the strength in my arms to hold myself up so I fell to the ground.  
"Yumichika, you think that kid..?" I did not see them anymore, but I felt there presence getting closer and closer. "Ah that may be, Do you have anything for her?" I soon smelled an incredible smell, this was the first time I had ever smelled something so good in my life. I managed to open my eye's just to see what this might be. "Hey kid, eat this." the shiny head held out to me what I now know to be a rice cake. I opened my mouth to say something but he put the rice cake in my mouth and without a thought my body responded, or well my mouth did. I ate it all up and it was so good. He then gave me another and then another, after five of them I had finally gained the strength to raise myself up to a sitting position. "man I had planned to eat this for launch but you just finished them all up." I was stabbed with a feeling of guilt. I bowed my head as far down as I could but did not know how to say that I was both grateful for this amazing gift and to show how much I was sorry. So I remained silent. "Aww Ikkaku isn't that cute. What is it little one can't talk?" I raised my head and found a hand resting on my shoulder. I looked at the owner who was the one with the feathers, he was quite beautiful and graceful in his movements. He raised me up to my feet and dusted of the grass that had been stuck to my clothes when I fell, he then placed his hand on my head and ruffed up my hair a bit. I felt as if the whole world had been turned upside down and that feeling made me smile. "Oh your smiling, that's a good sight aint it Ikkaku?" Ikkaku? That must me the name of the one with the shiny head. He had given me his launch and was looking at me from bottom to top. "Hey kid, what's your name?"  
I wasn't sure if I had ever had a name. So I just shook my head and looked down to my feet. Feeling a bit embarrassed. "hmm no name huh?" I shook my head again and looked at the men who had sat down close to me. "Well you won't get far without a name." Ikkaku gave me a sideways glance as he said that. "Well she seams delicate as a flower and with such bountiful black hair, how about Kurohana" Kurohana... black flower, sounds kinda cool. I ran my hand trough my hair and noticed I had lost the string I had used for so long. The one with the feathers then dug into his pocket and took out a dark red ribbon. He loosely braided my hair to the side and tied it up with the ribbon. "There the color matches your eye's." I looked up in surprise. My eye's are they red?. "Your giving this to me?" I asked as I felt the fabric between my fingers. He just smiled and stood back up. "Come on Ikkaku, best get back to work." I received a another side glance as he stood up. But he hesitated, reached for a small red flower. He then walked over to me and placed the small flower in my braid. "There Kurohana Akane?" he then turned away and caught up to his friend. I was at a loss for words, such presents I had never imagined. I quickly placed my hands on the ground and bowed my head as far as I could and shouted. "Thank you so much for these gifts. How can I ever repay you?!"  
The two of them spun around and smiled. "My name is Madarame Ikkaku and this is Ayasegawa Yumichika. Were in the 11th division of the 13 Court Guard Squads. If you ever become a soul reaper, look us up." I couldn't help but smile and bow my head again. "I will! thank you!"


	2. Blood Moon

**I had been half asleep when I finished this chapter and posted it anywhay. I went ower it and changed a bit so here it is. Please leave a review ^^,**

I now had a name. A name I was proud of. Given to me by strangers and those strangers became my goal. I had felt there reiatsu and I could not comprehend how long of a gap there was between me and them. But that was my goal. To make that gap smaller and to become worthy of the name they had bestowed on me.  
There was a place just outside a district I did not know the name of where there were bushels berries and a small lake and I made that my home for now. Someone must have lost a wooden sword there and it was now mine. And I used it to knock out apples from the trees, often to have it fall on my head.  
Not to far from this place I had found out that a white haired young man in a black kimono much like the one my name giver's had worn, came to train. He didn't come every day but I was able to sense him coming and I watched his routine and I learned a lot from him. I learned that I could use my wooden sword for more that a tool for getting food. Though I could not see him very well, being in a place he could not see me.  
His reiatsu was amazing and I could feel it in every swing of the sword. When ever he had finished and I could no longer sense him nearby I would take his place on the ground and though my form was infinitely worse I did as he did. Started with a warm up exercise on my back raising my head to my knees. Followed with using my hands to lift my body up. Then grasping the sword with both hands swinging it swiftly while moving my feet as if I was attacking an enemy. He always ended his exercise with a position I was not familiar with. Sitting down he would place both feet on top of the other his katana on each knee and his hands on each end.  
I always felt his powerful reiatsu build up as he closed his eye's in that position. Though I did not understand it at all.  
At first that was a difficult thing to do and my body was so tired after only an hour of exercise but surely I got stronger. My hands often had blisters on top of its blisters from the wooden sword but I tied it up with leaves and straw and kept going.  
Shortly after a tiring day of practice and collecting of berries I fell asleep after just sitting down in the midst of my little hidey place. I dreamt that a tall female creature, covered in dark red scales, with Black hair that seamed to sway back and forth like a flame. She had big hands and at the end of every finger were long black claws. Her golden eye's glowed like the sun and she had a black scaled tale as big as she was.  
She was telling me something. I couldn't hear it at first but it became clearer to me every time she spoke. Her voice was warm but her presence was overpowering. As her voice became clearer to me she walked to me or more like she glided towards me. She laid one hand on my heart, one on my forehead and said.  
"Kurohana Akane. I Will be with you from this day forward, I will be your power. When you need me, call out my name and I will lead you to your destiny. Say my name now and never forget that I will forever be yours. My name is Chigetsu (blood Moon).  
As I woke up I could feel my lips moving and on top of me laid a sheathed katana with a blood red ribbon wrapped around the hilt, much like the one Yumichika had given me for my hair. I was owerjoyed.  
Having been alone for such a long time I found that having a partner meant the world to me. I loved her. I now had a real sword to test out my strength and a partner to practice with. Every time I unsheathed Chigetsu I could feel as if big warm hands were holding on to mine and guiding me in my movements, Now I understood the position the young man had taken after a practice session, and I did the same once a week. I nimbly placed one foot on each knee placed my katana on the knees and my hand on each end. As I closed my eye's I could feel my consciousness fade away and I was brought to a place within my self. This place was a grassy hill, overlooking grassy planes and there she was, Chigetsu was with me. We spoke of the past and my troubles but we also spoke of the future. She inclined that I should make my way to the heart of soul society and join the soul reapers academy. And so I did.  
I guess my luck was still with me because as I arrived in Rukongai's first district I could hear the talk of people that the entrance exams were but a week away.  
As I walked in the first district I saw a few people who looked like they might know where to go so I asked. A few women wearing a red shitagi (under shirt), a white kosode (shirt) with red stripes and red hakama (trousers). I thought to myself that I would very much like to wear something like that.  
"Excuse me could point me to where the entrance exam is taken?" Thinking I might have said it wrong since they looked at me like I was, I opened my mouth to say it again but was stopped. "I'm sorry are you talking to us?" one of them said and took a step away from me while looking at me from bottom to top. "why don't you make your way back to where you came from." she then looked at her friends and whispered quite loudly "She doesn't ever have any sandals on what is with that?" and her friends laughed quite loudly in response.  
I immediately felt ashamed, backed away and ran. I felt tears starting to form so I ran faster and faster, this feeling of shame was over whelming, I had never thought there were people that would judge you for what you wore and frankly I had never thought about such things before.  
Not seeing where I was going I ran into an elderly woman who fell down. I felt even worse from that but had to help her up whilst hiding my face with my now messed up hair. Good thing its as long as it is. But I was surprised by what the woman said.  
"oh dear what ever is the matter?" I could not say a single word and I just hid my face with my hand and tried to stop the tears from pouring out. "Oh dear me, come here child I'll fix you right up, come on don't dilly dally." She took my other hand and led me a small distance from where we had been. She opened a door to a small house and led me inside. I felt awful troubling that woman but she seemed so nice I could not say a word to stop her from what she did next. She led me into a room and sat me down on a chair. She then came in with a bucket with warm water and told me to get clean. I was in a daze of the day's events and did as she said.  
When I finished she came into the room and helped me clean my hair. She then helped me put on a simple kimono. A bright purple color and a dark brown sash. She also gave me sandals and socks and the feeling of it all made me feel as if I was a completely different person.  
"now how about you tell me a bit about yourself. starting with why such a strong girl was crying like that." I told her my story. how I grew up and how I staid hidden all these years. I told her my name and how I got it and I told her about the young man I copied to get stronger. then I showed her Chigetsu who I had straped on my pack with the blood red rippon from the hilt. She told me of herself and told me her name was Fuko. I felt that I had gained a good friend in her.  
"How can I pay you for all of this?" She looked at me ands smiled. "How about you help me clean my house once a month?" I immediately nodded and smiled but, I didn't know the first think about cleaning a house... Much less anything else.  
"I will thank you. But I might need help learning those things first." she then gestured me to follow her and we began cleaning. It was tough but we cleaned the house from every corner to the outside." After we had finished she made us tee. "How about you live here with me? It gets a bit lonely and there is an extra bedroom you could have for yourself. " I hadn't even thought of a place to stay. "Well I am going to try to become a shinigami and I wouldn't want to burden you any more than I have." she just smiled again.  
"Well we will just make this your home when you have day's off. How about that?" Luck must have followed me from birth, this amazing woman offers me a home just like that. How could I refuse? "Thank you Fuko-san"


End file.
